Bravotwozero
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Stage 4 bans set to bite
Chris Tinkler, State politics reporter
February 25, 2007 12:00am
Article from: Sunday Herald Sun
UNPRECEDENTED Stage 4 water restrictions in Melbourne -- including total bans on outdoor watering by residents -- are expected to come into force on May 1.
Despite a sprinkling of rain around Melbourne yesterday morning, including 16mm at Thomson Dam, storages continue to decline.
With little rain forecast over the next week and Melbourne's reserve plummeting towards a third of capacity, experts warned Melburnians to brace for the worst.
The tough new bans would see all watering of lawns and gardens outlawed, turning suburban Melbourne parched brown and costing the state's nursery and turf industries up to $100 million.
Bans on all watering of sportsgrounds -- except for professional clubs -- would also hit grassroots sport hard.
A ban on car-washing -- except with recycled water -- under Stage 4, would finish the $500 million Victorian industry, Australian Car Wash Association spokeswoman Diane Ross said.
Water Minister John Thwaites said yesterday laws might be overhauled to require more industries to make savings -- to save the car wash industry from collapse.
He said heritage parks, such as the Royal Botanic Gardens, would still receive some exemptions under Stage 4.
Melbourne's water storages -- dropping about 1 per cent per fortnight -- were yesterday down to 34.5 per cent.
With the trigger for Stage 4 at 29.3 per cent, Mr Thwaites said: "It's unlikely it will come as early as April 1, but if we don't get much rain there's certainly more chance of it being May 1."
The weather bureau said the chance of higher-than-average rainfall in Victoria from March to May was 45-55 per cent, with the El Nino effect, which contributed to the 2006 drought, over.
http://www.news.com.au/sundayheralds...2-2862,00.html
I find it deplorable that we're staring down the barrel of stage 4 restrictions yet a temporary pool is still being set up at Rod Laver Arena for a one off swimming competition.
Govenment hypocrisy at it's worst when we already have a perfectly capable aquatic centre! :ranting: